The kickoff is a good one, and our receivers bring it up to the forty-yard line for me. I run out onto the field, pulling on my helmet. It’s the best feeling, pulling that helmet over my head. One minute I can hear the crowd cheering and chanting, coaches yelling, and the announcer over the loudspeaker. The next, most of the sounds are muffled. My eyes are focused, and all I can see is the field, the goalposts, and my teammates beside me.

Coach calls for a simple running play, and I set up behind my center. Elijah is in front of me, just to the left. I watch him dig his cleats into the grass and face off against the Spartan defense. I hope my pep talk did him some good.

And then the game really begins.

“Green 16! Green 16! Hike!” I yell, and the center places the ball perfectly into my waiting hands. I back up a few steps, keeping on the balls of my feet, and hand the ball off to Will, my most reliable running back, and step out of the play. Elijah and Bucky and the rest of the o-line shut down the Spartan defense pretty effectively, and Will gains a good twelve yards before being taken down just past the fifty-yard line.

I settle into the game pretty easily after that first handoff, and I keep the momentum going with a few more running plays before Coach calls for a long passing play. I take a look at Nate and my freshman wide receiver. “I’m going to the right with this one,” I tell Nate.

He nods, and the freshman looks more nervous than I’ve ever seen anyone look. Including Elijah before the game. The freshman shoves his mouth guard in and bites down hard.

“Set!” I yell, and watch my team fall into their stances.

“Blue 42! Blue 42! Hike!” I yell over my mouth guard, and my center hits me with a perfect snap. I catch sight of Elijah fighting hard, and I know I have only a few seconds to set up and let the pass out before I’m taken down. The Spartan defense is catching on to our style of play, and they’re learning quickly how to get past Bucky and Elijah and the rest of the o-line.

But Elijah holds on.

Meanwhile, my freshman has taken off downfield and is nearing the ten-yard line when he pivots right and turns to look right at me. I let the ball go, and it falls perfectly into his waiting arms. He pivots again and runs as fast as I’ve ever seen him run right into the end zone. I end the first possession without even a tiny grass stain on my white pants.

I pound my fist on Elijah’s shoulder pads on our way off the field. “See? See? You got this, 87! You got this!” I shout in his face.